


The Art of 8 Limbs

by TokyoHaiku



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Gym romance, Kickboxing, Massage, Size Kink, Slow Burn, Touch-Starved, sports prodigy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-15
Updated: 2019-11-20
Packaged: 2021-01-31 07:44:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21442687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TokyoHaiku/pseuds/TokyoHaiku
Summary: After a traumatic incident, Rey joins a Thai Kickboxing gym to learn self-defense. There she meets the broody Ben Solo, a skilled trainer with a mysterious past. She finds herself drawn into the thrilling world of pro-fighting, but the stakes are higher than she anticipated.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 14
Kudos: 81





	1. Fundamentals

Rey checked the address on her cracked phone screen for a third time. She was standing in front of a non-descript brick warehouse with no windows in a fairly rough part of town. She once again questioned her sanity. What was she even doing here? This was way outside her comfort zone. She thought again of a dozen reasons she should just walk away. She didn’t have the time, she didn’t have the money, she’d probably be bad at it...the list went on and on. Rey was too self-aware though, and recognized her stalling for what it was. In the end, there was only one reason to walk inside. Rey was tired of letting fear dictate her actions. She didn’t want to be afraid anymore, and this was the first step to reclaiming the sense of security that had been taken from her that night 3 months ago. She felt the familiar tension rise in her shoulders as she remembered the incident, and chanted the now-familiar mantra in her head to calm herself: nothing had happened, she'd gotten away, she was fine. But she'd never let herself be that helpless ever again. She took a deep breath, and pushed the door open. 

Her first thought upon entering was that the exterior was misleading. The outside of the building had looked neglected and dilapidated, but the inside was clean and modern. It was a large open space, and a massive boxing ring dominated the center of the room. To the left was an area filled with a variety of typical gym equipment like dumbells, barbells, and exercise bikes, and to the right were hanging punching bags and assorted boxing equipment. The gym was more crowded than Rey had expected, as in her experience, 11am was not a peak gym time. At least two shirtless guys were pummeling the bags, while another pair were sparring in the ring. Sweat flung off their glistening bodies like lawn sprinklers. There were another five or six people of various ages doing some sort of circuit with the weight-lifting equipment. Dead center, not far from the door, was a check-in desk.

The guy behind the desk appeared to be sleeping as Rey approached. Although how he managed it when the room was filled with almost blinding fluorescent light, Rey couldn't figure out. After waiting a few moments to see if he had heard her walk up, she cleared her throat politely.

Slowly, the dark head rose from the crossed arms cushioning it. Bleary brown eyes regarded her with apathy bordering on hostility. "What?"

Rude. Rey took in the face before her. Pale skin, at least 2 days of stubble, and the puffy eyes and reddened nose of someone who probably drank too much. His hair needed to be cut too. He was somewhere in his 30s, although he looked hard-used. But something about him warned Rey not to take him lightly. He had a dangerous, vaguely predatory aura. Rey had learned to trust her instincts about people.

Rey pasted what she hoped was a convincing smile on her face, "Hi, I'm Rey. I'm supposed to have an intro session with Mr. Luke at 11?"

"Luke isn't here" was his reply, before returning his head to its previous napping position.

Rey could feel her temper beginning to kindle, banishing her previous anxiety. Through gritted teeth she managed to grate out with some semblance of civility, "Well, do you know when he will be back?"

The man's head rose again and regarded her with some annoyance, as though he hadn't expected her to pursue the subject "No, I'm not his mother."

Rey felt her patience snap at this sarcastic reply. Fuck this guy, and fuck this place. Without thinking, the words came out.

"Wow, thanks for nothing asshole. Tell him I'll find another gym. And while he's at it, he should consider finding another desk guy. I'm sure you're great for business". With that she whipped away from the desk and started moving towards the exit.

She hadn't made it 3 steps before she heard the man's deep voice command "Wait!". She considered ignoring him, but for some perverse reason, it felt like that would be letting him win, and Rey was nothing if not competitive.

"What?", she turned around, feet braced apart aggressively. He had stood up and come around the desk to assess her, his dark eyes making her feel intensely self-conscious of her well worn sneakers and ratty workout shirt. He was ridiculously tall, towering over Rey's own fairly respectable 5'4". It was impossible to judge his physique under the baggy grey (perhaps originally black?) sweatshirt and matching sweatpants he was wearing, but judging by his height and hunched posture, she suspected he was a tad overweight and trying to hide a beer gut under his loose clothing. An over-large nose and prominent ears peaking out of his curling dark hair completed the impression of a surly Sasquatch.

"You said you're here for an intro?" he asked.

"Yes", she replied suspiciously.

"Luke isn't here, but I can do your intro if you're still interested". It sounded like a challenge, like a dare.

Rey knew she was hot-tempered, could be impulsive, and was stupidly stubborn. Sometimes it felt like there were two parts of her brain, the Good, Smart Rey, and the Bad, Self-Destructive Rey. Smart Rey was telling her to cut her losses, and just leave. Self-Destructive Rey was telling her not to back down. She paused for a moment as her two halves warred for dominance. In the end though, Rey was here, and she wanted to learn Muay Thai. The online reviews had said this gym was the best, and she wanted to learn from the best. She wasn't going to let this asshole stand in the way of it. She narrowed her eyes at the man before her.

"Fine".

He allowed himself a small smirk of satisfaction, and Rey sensed a lessening of his disdain for her, as though she had passed some sort of test. Bizarre.

"Have you done any boxing or kickboxing before? Any kind of martial arts experience?" he asked, all business now.

"No". Rey didn't feel like offering this guy any information, and besides, she didn't think the school-yard scuffles of her rough childhood really counted as "experience".

"So you don't know how to wrap your hands", he said more to himself than to her. "I'll do it for you today, but watch some youtube videos at home and learn to do it yourself for next time". Although why he assumed there would be a next time for Rey was frankly puzzling considering his attitude. She watched as he went to a laundry hamper and pulled out long strips of what looked like bandages with velcro at the ends and approached her. "Hold out your hand, palm up". He was standing very close to her as he began the process of wrapping her hands. Close enough that Rey was able to discern the smell of his body wash, which, if she were honest, smelled delicious. Warm and spicy, and probably expensive. It definitely wasn't Axe. Despite whatever other grooming shortcomings this guy had, it appeared he did bathe regularly. As he loomed over her, Rey felt a twinge of attraction low in her belly which she violently suppressed. The last thing she needed was to be attracted to an asshole. Life was hard enough as it was. 

To distract herself from the awkward situation, she asked "So, are you going to tell me your name or what?"

The man paused for a moment, and looked genuinely surprised. Why he was he surprised? It's not like he was wearing a name-tag. "Oh, I guess people call me Ben now". Rey thought that was a weird way to phrase it, but whatever. He finished wrapping her hands and gestured her to follow him over to the equipment. He handed her a pair of well-worn gloves to put on, then grabbed a pair of thick pads that he strapped to his arms as he launched into what sounded like a fairly rote explanation of the sport of Thai Kickboxing, or Muay Thai.

"Muay Thai comes from Thailand, and has a long and important history in their culture. It’s called the Art of 8 Limbs, because there are 8 major strikes. I'll show you the basic punches and kicks, and if you pick those up quickly, we can move on to the elbows and knees". Although his tone implied he was doubtful of that possibility. Rey gritted her teeth, determined to prove him wrong and be the best fucking intro student this guy had ever laid eyes on.

Rey already knew most of what he'd said. She always did her research before taking on a new project. Muay Thai was rapidly growing in popularity in the US, following its recent recognition as an Olympic sport. Fight events were held nearly every weekend in the local area, and there was almost always a professional match being televised at any given sports bar. The new state legislation had relaxed the laws on sports gambling and cemented Muay Thai's place as the hottest and most lucrative Saturday night entertainment available. Rey didn't have any plans to compete, but about a month ago she'd watched some fighters on TV, and had been impressed by the violent beauty of their movements. They'd looked self-assured, confident, and dangerous; she'd envied them and wanted that for herself.

The man named Ben began by showing her the basic stance for her feet, "Shoulder width wide, about 2 shoulder widths long...weight on the balls of your feet" was his terse explanation, then he demonstrated the proper technique for a jab. He held up the weird pad strapped to his arm, and commanded her to throw her best attempt. Her strike landed with a satisfying 'thwack'. He looked momentarily surprised. "That...wasn't terrible actually". Rey's hackles were still up about his condescending attitude, but she couldn't stop the warm feeling of accomplishment his words made her feel. She'd been in so many scuffles during her childhood that she'd figured out a few things by trial and error. He had her throw a few more, but seemingly satisfied by her progress, he moved on to the other techniques. Rey quickly lost track of time. 

Although he was a condescending prick, he was a surprisingly insightful teacher and clearly knew his stuff. At the end of the session, he squinted at her suspiciously, "Are you sure you haven't done this before?" Again, Rey felt that warm glow of pride from his backward compliment. "Positive” she dead-panned.

Rey knew some things about herself. She knew she’d had a tough start in life, and carried some baggage as a result. It had made her strong, made her resilient, but it also left her vulnerable in some ways. In the absence of any positive parental figure, she had grown up stupidly hungry for validation. This man’s validation tasted particularly potent to Rey, as it was obvious he didn’t bestow it frequently. Rey resented how good it made her feel.

“You’re not bad…for a beginner. You need a teacher though. If you expect to make progress, you should train at least 3 times a week, more if your body can handle it. And you should be mindful of your diet. Lots of protein. You’re too skinny, you'll need to bulk up if you want to be competitive. Stay hydrated, obviously, and at least 8 hours of sleep a night. You should come back in tomorrow, to make sure you really cement what you learned today” he seemed inclined to keep spewing his totally unsolicited and slightly insulting advise, except mercifully for Rey, he was interrupted by an older man interjecting.

“Slow down, Ben. She hasn’t even said if she wants to sign up yet”. The man pushed off from the wall he had been leaning on, as though he had been observing their session for some time. He had grey hair, a fairly untamed beard, and sky blue eyes. Impossible to pinpoint his age, but somewhere in his 50s or 60s was Rey's best guess. He approached and held out a hand for her to shake. “I’m Luke. You must be Rey. Sorry I missed your intro. But it looks like you did alright without me” was all he offered by way of explanation, shifting his assessing gaze between her and the tall, now silent man next to her. There was a weird tension in the air, as the man named Ben seemed to retreat into himself. “I didn’t do anything wrong” he said defensively, “You weren’t here, and she wanted an intro.”

Luke released a sign and looked a little sad as he replied “No Ben, you didn’t do anything wrong. Thank you for helping out”. Ben seemed to take this as his cue to leave, as he quickly unstrapped his gear, and beat a hasty retreat to what Rey presumed were the locker rooms. Rey found herself extremely curious about the interaction. She was clearly missing out on some subtext.

Luke turned from watching Ben’s retreating back, shaking off his thoughts and fixing his piercing gaze on her. “Well, what did you think?” For a bizarre moment, Rey thought he was asking about her thoughts on Ben and was on the cusp of offering her mixed opinion when she realized he probably meant the intro.

“Oh! I, uh, actually I liked it a lot. Can you tell me your rates and your schedule? I think I’d like to sign up.”

He seemed pleased. “Sure. The gym is open 24/7, so you can use the weight equipment and bags any time you want. Classes are every hour on the hour starting at 3pm and ending at 8 pm. We also have two morning classes, one at 5 am for people that like to train before work, and another at 8 am. It’s $100 dollars a month for membership”.

Rey felt her excitement growing as she heard how accessible the gym was, considering her wildly irregular schedule, but winced when he named the price. $100 was definitely on the high end of what she could consistently afford. She began mentally calculating how to shave down her already shoe-string budget.

Luke seemed to sense her trepidation, because he then asked “Oh wait, are you a student?”

“Oh, uh yes, at Chandrilla Community. Automotive program”. Rey responded, confused by his random question.

“Ah, I almost forgot. We’re having a special student rate promotion…$20 dollars”, he said. Rey couldn’t help the excited smile that broke out over her face. $20 dollars she could definitely do. It was an unbelieveable price, really. Even cheaper than the big box gyms that didn’t offer classes. Rey quickly gave her agreement.

“Ok, come on back to the office and we’ll get you into the system”. Luke gestured for her to follow him. As she trailed along behind him, Rey couldn’t shake the feeling that this was the beginning of something important.  
—————————————  
Rey did, in fact, make it back the next day. And the next, and the next after that. The gym offered a variety of classes, and she quickly became a regular in the beginner’s class. She was surprised by how easy it was for her to make friends here. Usually she struggled to fit in, finding herself on the periphery looking in at the normal, well-adjusted people. But something at this gym was different. There was an instant camaraderie that she’d never experienced before. Everyone was friendly and helpful, but with a dash of good-natured heckling that set Rey at ease. There was a bond of mutual respect and trust that seemed to spontaneously arise from training Muay Thai. She supposed it made sense. They often trained by punching and kicking each other, practicing dangerous techniques but never with the intention of hurting each other. Engaging in these activities was the equivalent of a team-building “trust fall”, over and over again. Entrusting the safety and well-being of your body to the keeping of your classmates as you trained.

Not that the classes were easy, mind you. Rey had never been this sore in her life. She had been active, but hardly an athlete before joining the gym. The workouts were brutal by her standards; a 10 km run, followed by 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 100 squats, then at least 6 rounds of pads or heavy bag work. It was incredibly difficult, but Rey found she loved the challenge. Even when her elbows started making weird clicking noises during push-ups, she’d push through. She was so stiff and sore the first week, she was barely able to lift herself from the toilet. But she kept coming.

She found herself constantly ravenous as her body adjusted to the new workload, straining her very limited grocery budget. But she was beginning to see some real results. Her arms were more muscular and she was sleeping better at night. She found her confidence slowly returning as well, as she gradually relaxed the paranoia that had haunted her the past few months. She only checked the lock on her front door once a night now, before turning in to bed. 

Rey soon noticed that all the regulars at the gym had “gym names”. Usually a weird or funny nickname with some sort of inside joke. There was the patient beginner's class instructor Finn, who everyone called "Trooper" because of his stint in the army. Then there was the charming, adrenaline-junkie Hispanic guy who sometimes helped with demonstrations. His name was Poe, but everyone called him "Fly Boy". Luke was usually addressed as "Ajahn", which Rey figured out was some kind of title. But Ben was just "Ben", even though he was there all the time. There was a core of about 20 people that made up the gym's "fight team", a mix of professionals and amateurs. They seemed incredibly tight knit, spending most of their time training and hanging out together.

Rey envied and admired them. She began looking up the gym’s fighters on YouTube. She tried to learn their combos and strategies. She looked up everyone, even finding old footage of Luke during his hey-day. She searched for Ben's name, but disappointingly, didn't find anything. Maybe he hadn't had that many fights, or maybe they were embarrassing and he requested they be removed. 

She tried to ignore him, but it was difficult. Some visceral part of her remained tuned in to his presence. He was always there, day after day, manning the front desk, sometimes napping, sometimes reading, sometimes squinting at something on the computer screen. She never saw him train, and he barely interacted with anyone at the gym besides Luke. People seemed to give him a wide berth, as though they were afraid of him. At best he was dismissive, at worst, outright rude. Rey continued to think having him as the front-desk guy was questionable at best, but kept her opinion to herself. But despite his very obvious flaws, something about him continued to attract Rey's attention. 

And over the days and weeks since she joined the gym, it became apparent that the awareness was mutual. Whenever she was in a class with an odd number and the students paired off to hit pads, suddenly Ben would appear seemingly out of nowhere, to be her partner. And judging by the confused and bewildered reactions of the people around her, this was not normal behavior for him. Rey couldn’t figure out why he’d singled her out for his attention. At first she’d been annoyed by his intrusiveness, but over time, she had to admit it was actually very helpful. 

Not that he was any less of an asshole, but the advice and instructions he gave her were always, inevitably, spot on. It was weird. He never tried to talk to her outside of class, never talked about anything other than Muay Thai with her. He was a total enigma, and no matter how hard she tried to avoid it, Rey often found herself puzzling over the mystery of Ben the-front-desk-guy. Did he have a girlfriend? Was he even straight? Why didn’t he socialize with the rest of the gym? A couple times she’d overheard some hushed gossip and speculation about him, which she’d always pretend not to be interested in but strain her ears to hear. She’d gleaned that he was Luke’s nephew, had been a pro fighter at some point, and had had some kind of fall from grace which had ended his career. No one ever offered the details, although it appeared to be unspoken common knowledge. Rey didn't dare ask though, she didn't want people to think she was interested.

Today was another one of those days where the beginner's class had an odd number and Ben had come to hold pads for her, but he seemed particularly ill-tempered. “I said to turn your hip over more when you kick” he grunted, as though her kicking technique was a personal offense to him. Rey tried again, but didn’t understand what he meant. She thought she was turning her hip over? It felt like it anyway. But whatever she did, it apparently wasn’t good enough for Ben. “No, I said turn it over! You won’t get any power if you just flick your leg like that!” He was clearly getting frustrated, but Rey tried not to take it personally. She'd seen him blow his lid over pretty trivial stuff, like someone leaving their sweaty shirt draped on the ring. Rey tried again, but still didn’t know what she was supposed to correct. 

“No, you’re doing it wrong!” Ben had apparently had enough, because he was unstrapping the pads and throwing them to the side. “Follow me!”, he commanded, leading her to the heavy bags. Rey made brief eye contact with Trooper for guidance. He shrugged, leaving the choice to her. The beginner's class continued on as she followed her surly trainer over to the bags.

“The power comes from the hips for everything. If you don’t involve your core, then you might as well just be playing pattycake with your opponent because your strikes won’t do shit”. He squared up with the bag and demonstrated the proper form. When his kick hit the bag, the whole rack shook with the impact. Rey found herself impressed despite herself. She’d seen some of the more advanced students hitting the bags, but none with the kind of power Ben just showed her. “Now you try.”

Rey tried to imitate what he’d shown her. Her kick felt a little stronger, but she could tell she was still missing the key component. She felt close though, just on the cusp of some kind of physical epiphany. Suddenly, Ben was behind her, crowding into her space. She could feel the heat of his body through his baggy sweatshirt as he leaned in close and placed his huge hands on her hips. Rey felt her stomach clench in sudden awareness. Every hair on her body stood on end. There was no reason for her disproportionate reaction to his proximity. Ben's actions were in no way unusual for Muay Thai. Instructors were often physical with the students, to show the proper posture or angle for something, bending student's bodies like wire pipe cleaners. But this felt different. Rey felt incredibly flustered and hyperaware of Ben's large frame as it curved around her. She felt tiny, completely cocooned by his presence. 

“No, turn your hips like this” he breathed in her ear. He moved her hips in a close approximation of what he wanted. Rey hardly registered his words, too focused on his warm hands burning a hole through her thin workout clothes. She felt him take a deep breath and open his mouth to say something, before he suddenly stepped back again. The space he’d been in felt cold.

Rey felt a little dazed, and it took a moment for her to collect herself. Ben was talking, sounding even more pissed than before. “Anyways, like I said, you need to turn your hip over. In fact, that should be your only priority until you can get it right. It’s basically pointless’...” he continued rambling, but Rey wasn’t listening. Distracting presence of Ben aside, something about the way he’d moved her body had felt right. She squared up with the bag, and relaxing the tension in her shoulders, threw a kick.  
Her leg hit the bag with a loud crack, rattling the rack and causing a few people to glance over in surprise. Ben stopped literally in mid-sentence. After a moment of shocked silence, he managed “OK, yes, like that. Just practice that until the end of class, and once you can do it consistently, practice with the other side” before abruptly turning away and leaving Rey staring at his back.

Rey felt like something had shifted. She felt the heavy weight of inevitability settle into her stomach. She hadn’t imagined the physical chemistry between them, and it was obvious Ben was aware of it too. 

For the most part Rey believed that the world was chaos and there was no such thing as fate. But she had a strong streak of fatalism and had seen the fallibility of human nature too many times. She observed enough of Ben to know he was an emotional dumpster fire and getting involved with him would only end in grief for her. But fighting a mutual attraction of this magnitude was like fighting the pull of gravity. His high-octane pheromones were scrambling her frontal-cortex and Rey knew with certainty that she was going to end up sleeping with him. It was only a matter of time. She couldn’t control the final outcome, but she could minimize the extent of the damage. She would protect herself at all costs.


	2. Learning to Let Go

Rey barely saw Ben for the next few days. It seemed they were avoiding each other by a mutual unspoken agreement. Rey wasn’t complaining, she needed time and space to think about the situation.

Rey was unwrapping her hands after class when she noticed Rose surreptitiously checking out Finn. This wasn't the first time Rey had caught her admiring the class instructor. Rey had a budding friendship with the other girl, so she decided to tease her a little and maybe give her some gentle encouragement.

"See something you like?" Rey asked, raising her eyebrows in a suggestive way and tilting her head towards Finn.

Rose immediately flushed and looked around to make sure no one had heard. "Oh my God Rey, shhhh! I have no idea what you're talking about!" Although she very obviously did.

"Aww c'mon Rose. It's pretty obvious."

Rose sighed. "You're right. I don’t do a very good job of hiding it, do I? But I mean, he's just so hot. You'd have to be blind not to notice."

Rey refrained from pointing out that at least 90% of the men who trained at their gym had pretty amazing bodies. "Is that all you like about him? Or is it a little more than that?" Rey prodded.

Rose turned an even deeper shade of red. "I mean, he's so nice and patient too. He never gets mad, and he’s so strong! He just feels like someone who would keep you safe you know?" Rey did know. Finn seemed like a real stand-up guy. Dependable, supportive, loving. Why wasn't Rey attracted to a guy like him? Instead she was lusting after the gym pariah. Rey wondered if this was some sort of hold-over from her shitty upbringing. Did she somewhere, deep down inside, feel like she was unworthy of anything better? Was her attraction to Ben a way of sabotaging herself? Rey pushed those thoughts aside for now. This conversation was about Rose.

"Well why don't you flirt with him a little bit? Test the waters? He's definitely single, I heard him complaining about it to Fly Boy earlier."

Rose shook her head vigorously. "Oh no, I definitely couldn't do that. He's way out of my league."

"Don't sell yourself short! You're so smart, and gorgeous, and fun to be around. You should at least give him the opportunity to get to know you a little." she said.

Rey was being sincere. Rose had a great sense of humor and was always in a good mood. Rey thought her and Finn would make a perfect couple. Besides, Rey had noticed a lot of the guys at the gym didn't seem to have any game. Most of them were total gym nerds and had very limited interaction with women, choosing instead to spend hours a day at the gym training. Rey really thought Rose would be doing Finn a favor by making the first move.

Rose looked hopeful but then seemed to deflate a little. "I mean, maybe. But Luke kind of discourages gym members from dating each other. I guess it can lead to a lot of drama…I wouldn't want to piss off Luke, especially since it probably wouldn't work out anyways."

Rey felt alarmed. She didn't know the gym had a no-dating rule. What if someone had noticed her attraction to Ben? No one had said anything though, so maybe she was safe. She rapidly recalculated the risk-to-reward ratio for potentially having sex with Ben. The gym had become more and more important to Rey. She didn't have any family, and the friends she had made here soothed that raw wound in her life. It wasn't worth jeopardizing all that just to sleep with a moody misanthrope, no matter how good the physical chemistry between them. Rey resolved to avoid a romantic entanglement with Ben as much as she could. She was used to self-denial and discipline, how hard could it be?

Maybe if she got to know him better, some of the sexual attraction would ebb. Maybe part of the attraction was his mystique. It was like that sometimes. When you didn't know someone very well they could become a blank slate to project all your fantasies on to. That made sense to Rey. She had a plan. She’d start talking to him more, and probably discover something truly repulsive about his personality.

Rey patted Rose consolingly on the back. "Well hey, you never know. Just don't let your self-confidence hold you back. I'm telling you, Trooper would be delighted to get your number."

Rose gave Rey a big smile. "Thanks Rey, that means a lot to me.” She looked a little shy as she said, "You're a good friend".

Rey felt warm and fuzzy inside. She returned Rose's smile with a spontaneous hug. "You too, Rose."

Rey didn't need a man, she needed friends. She couldn't risk this precious new surrogate family she was growing to love.

\--------

The very next day, Rey put her plan into action and started going out of her way to talk to Ben. Not that he made it easy at first. He definitely worked hard to give off “Do Not Disturb” vibes when he sat at the front desk. But for all that he projected the strong impression of a misanthrope, he seemed lonely. As a self-proclaimed expert in defense mechanisms, it wasn't hard for Rey to recognize that Ben was preemptively pushing people away to avoid rejection. She wished she didn’t find it endearing, but she did. It hinted at an underlying vulnerability that he was trying to disguise with rudeness.

And despite herself, she realized she actually enjoyed talking with him. Ben was incredibly smart and had fantastic taste in books. He had a new book with him every week, but this time she recognized the cover of the novel he was reading. She couldn’t stop herself from commenting.

“Wow, I didn’t pin you as a Margaret Atwood fan”, she said.

Ben shifted his gaze to her face from his place about halfway through the book. “You’ve read her work?” he asked, his complete attention suddenly focused on her. 

“Well, yea. Pretty much everything she’s ever published. But her stuff seems a little...ah...I dunno, liberal for someone like you maybe?”

Ben snorted at her comment. It occurred to her that she may have offended him. That was good right? Part of the plan? But then he gave her a crooked grin. “What, you mean a meat-head jock like me? I’ll have you know I’ve voted blue since I turned 18. Just because I don’t like individual people that much, doesn’t mean I don’t feel like we have an obligation as a society to help each other.”

Rey was both pleased and disappointed to learn this about Ben. It would have been easier to dislike him if he’d held repugnant political views. 

At that moment, his phone lit up with an incoming call from “Mom”. Rey couldn’t help but note it was the latest model of Samsung, released just last week, easily a $1000 dollar device. What kind of money was he making as the desk guy? She also couldn’t help but notice that his wallpaper was a selfie of himself holding a fluffy black cat.

He answered the phone, shooting her an apologetic look as he walked outside to take the call.

Christ, her plan was backfiring in a big way. In this conversation, she'd inferred that he was an intelligent liberal with a soft spot for cats, who was probably loaded and stayed in touch with his mom. Great.

She reminded herself that he was still rude and had a terrible temper. Just yesterday while she'd been talking to Fly Boy, she'd seen him punch a locker for no apparent reason.

However, as the days went on and she had more conversations with him, it became harder and harder to remember his flaws. He continued to help her periodically with her Muay Thai, holding pads for her when she came to the gym at odd hours and giving her helpful drills. He kept a strict physical distance however, instead describing things to her in great detail even when it would've been easier to adjust her body manually. Rey appreciated the distance. She did. Maybe he'd lost his initial attraction to her? If the attraction wasn't mutual, it'd be easier to let go of. She told herself she wasn't disappointed.

Over time, she noticed more gym members interacting with Ben as well. He was by no means the life of the party, but more people greeted him in passing or, if they were bold, asked him to troubleshoot their technique. It was as though Rey had blazed a trail, and having seen the results, others followed her lead. Ben seemed distrustful of the attention at first, but eventually seemed to accept that it wasn't some sort of trick. He begrudgingly began to help some of the others to good effect. 

And he had started to make more effort with his appearance. She noticed he’d bought a new sweatshirt and had finally gotten a haircut. His face was close-shaven more often than not now, and he looked better rested. It seemed to Rey that some of the women from the fitness class were lingering at his desk for longer than strictly necessary, in her opinion. But that was none of her business, she reminded herself.

\----

Rey practiced religiously now. She was at the gym daily for hours at a time. She found Muay Thai both comforting and challenging. The movements and combinations had a sort of internal logic that appealed to her. If something didn’t feel quite right, she would work on it until she’d smoothed the rough edges away. She frequently stayed after class to work repetitions on the bag, and soon was able to consistently produce the kind of speed and power Ben had shown her. It was only a few weeks later that Luke came to her after class with a suggestion.

“I think it might be time for you to move to the intermediate class,'' he said. 

Rose, who had been Rey's partner that day, nodded emphatically. "Yea, totally! I thought you were going to break my arm with those kicks, even through the pads!"

Rey was immediately apologetic "Oh my God Rose, I'm so sorry! Why didn't you tell me I was going too hard?"

The other girl just laughed. "No Rey, it's a good thing! I've only been here a little while, but I've never seen someone pick things up so quickly!"

Luke nodded his agreement. "You are learning at an incredible rate, but it's important to keep challenging yourself. Start training with the intermediate class. If it's too much, you can always go back with the beginner's again. But I think you should try it out."

Rey felt herself growing warm with their praise. No one had ever made her feel special before, and she was equal parts thrilled and embarrassed. But she was scared too. They seemed to think she had some sort of talent, but what if she disappointed them? What if she just picked up the basics really quickly, but hit a wall with the more advanced stuff? 

Unable to help herself, her eyes sought out Ben, only to find him at the desk watching the whole exchange from afar. He held her gaze for a moment, and seemed to sense her uncertainty because he gave her a reassuring nod. Rey relaxed. Ben was probably one of the most critical people in the gym. If he thought she could hack it in the intermediate class, then who was she to doubt him? Besides, it was mostly due to his tips and advice that she had progressed so fast. Maybe she wasn’t actually that talented, and he was just an incredible trainer. She found the thought weirdly comforting, and it lifted some of the pressure of their expectations. 

Rey turned to Luke and gave her assent. “OK, yea, I’ll give it a shot.” Luke smiled.

"Good. I think you're gonna go far kid".

Rey hoped that was true.

\-------  
Most of the fight team trained with the intermediate class when they weren’t preparing for a fight. Rey soon realized she was by far and away the least experienced student in the class. Most everyone else in the class had been training in some form or another for at least 5 years. Rey had been coming to the gym for barely 3 months.

She often paired with Finn, the same instructor who taught the beginner's class. He was easy to be around, calm and laid-back. When he mentioned in passing that he'd been in the foster system too, Rey recognized a kindred spirit. Even though he was a good-looking man, Rey didn't feel the slightest stirring of sexual attraction. In fact, it was probably a large reason she felt so comfortable around him. Rey had a fundamental distrust of carnal desire. She'd seen too many women make bad decisions in the name of good dick.

But Rey's good judgement didn't feel threatened by Finn, which is why she decided to answer honestly when he asked her after class, "What made you decide to take up Muay Thai?"

It was a common enough question at the gym, and most people gave some variation of “To get in shape” or “Because it looks cool” as their answer. But Rey had a different reason.

Rey didn't have many close friends, so she hadn't told anyone yet about what had happened with Unkar. But it felt right to confide in Finn.

"To be honest, I had kind of a scary run-in with a guy. I used to collect old car parts from the Jakku junkyard and sell them for extra money. Never had a problem before. But a few months ago, a new guy started hanging around there. A real creep, called himself Unkar. Anyways, I'm generally pretty careful, but one day he managed to corner me alone there. He made a couple threats, roughed me up a little bit. He was just trying to scare me off; he didn't like that I always found the best parts and was making more money than him. Anyways, it wasn't really a big deal, but I thought it might be a good idea to learn some self-defense skills. You know, just in case." Rey hadn’t been back there since.

Rey didn’t offer too much detail, and had minimized the emotional impact it'd had on her. She’d actually been incredibly frightened, but she didn't want Finn to think she was weak or cowardly. She'd also omitted the scarier parts, like that Unkar had somehow known her apartment address and threatened to find her there someday. But she was glad she'd told him the extremely sanitized version of the events, because the look on Finn's face was murderous.

"Are you kidding me? Did you contact the police?"

"Um, no? He didn't really do anything other than try to scare me….and besides, collecting parts like that isn't exactly 100% legal. Why would I want to attract the attention of the 4-0?"

Finn was shaking his head in disbelief. "That piece of shit. I swear to God Rey, if I ever meet him I will break his face and he will be drinking from a straw for months". Rey was surprised by the violent words coming from friendly, playful Finn. She'd never seen this side of him before.

Strangely, his anger made Rey feel better. Some part of her, the lonely unwanted child that had stood outside a house with all her belongings in a trash bag, had been afraid that he wouldn't believe her. Or even worse, told her that what had happened wasn't important. His genuine concern made her feel valued.

"Well, thanks for that Finn. Hopefully if I train hard enough, I'll be able to break his face myself some day."

He cracked a smile at that, although he still seemed upset. "Well, promise me you'll be careful. Please don't go back there alone. If you ever want an escort to extract a little street justice, I'd be happy to help Sunshine".

Rey felt better. It was therapeutic to know that someone cared. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she glimpsed movement from behind the large hanging bags. But when she turned to look, there was no one there. Had someone else been listening? She dismissed the thought. Her story wasn't that interesting and she wasn't that important.

\-----

The next week ended up being brutal. Tuition was due, she had to buy an expensive online program for class, and her job at the campus bodega cut back her hours. Rey was worried she was going to be in the red this month unless she did something drastic. She entertained the idea of a quick trip to the junkyard. She'd have to be careful, probably bring some pepper spray. The alternative was to not eat. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d had to go hungry, but it had been a while and her body wasn't used to it anymore.

She was exhausted from working late shifts at her second job at a bar, but she needed to release some stress. She finally made time to go to the gym after five days of being away. It was the longest she'd gone without training since she'd joined. The moment Rey walked into the building, Ben was all over her.

“You haven’t been here all week, and you don’t look sick. If you’re not going to take this seriously, tell me now so I won’t waste my time”. He was definitely pissed, but trying to suppress it, like he knew it wasn’t appropriate. Had he been worried? No, that couldn’t be it. Rey felt her ire rising. Who did he think he was? He wasn’t even her trainer, just some rando at the gym who was always inserting himself into her business.

“Well sorry Ben, some of us have to eat! My hours got cut back, and I’m having to pick up shifts at the bar. It’s the 20th, and I haven’t even made rent this month.” She spit back in a decidedly not apologetic tone. He looked momentarily confused by her statement.

“What do you mean, ‘made rent’. Like you still have to negotiate it or something?” Rey didn’t understand his question, so she gave the most clear explanation of her situation she could conceive of.

“What I mean is that I have to pay $400 dollars to my shitty landlord on the 1st, and I only have $250 in my bank account. In addition, I have exactly 7 packets of ramen in my cupboard at home, and I have to make that last 10 days.” She spoke slowly, as though Ben were mentally impaired. He looked gradually more horrified as he took in her words, then totally scandalized at her mention of ramen.

“You’ve been eating ramen?! Do you have any idea how much sodium they have? And what are you doing for protein??”

“Oh my god Ben, ramen noodles are not the issue here! What planet are you even from? Never mind, don’t answer that.” She rolled her eyes in irritation at this ridiculous reminder of his very different background. “Anyways, as much as I love coming here, I have to meet my other obligations first. Namely, shelter and food. It should be better next month, but I can’t make any promises”.

Ben seemed mollified by her answer. He paused a moment to think hard about something. “Let me talk something over with Luke. I might have a solution to this”.

Rey was immediately defensive. “I didn’t tell you that for pity. I’m not a charity case, I can take care of myself”.

Ben rolled his eyes. “Yes yes I get it, you’re a strong independent woman. I respect that about you and I wasn’t implying otherwise. This would be a mutually beneficial solution, not some kind of hand-out. Don’t let your pride make you stupid”.

That shut her up. She knew she could be too prickly. She didn't like depending on other people for help, because she'd been let down so many times in the past. Could she make it through the month without help? Absolutely. But was there any reason to not hear Ben's proposition? Not really. So she stayed by the desk as Ben sought Luke out in his office.

They both returned a few minutes later, Ben looking very pleased with himself. "How do you feel about being the gym receptionist?"

Rey was taken aback. It sounded great, actually. 

"The hours are pretty flexible, I can cover when you're in class and such. We can pay you twenty dollars an hour. We'd need you here about 6 hours a day, or more if you're willing. And honestly, you'd be doing the gym a huge favor. I hate the job, and I'm pretty sure I scare away at least half the new intros. You can study for school during the down times. I'm getting a lot more requests for private sessions too and it doesn't make sense for me to just be sitting at the desk when I could be training people. What do you think?" Ben said.

It was an offer she couldn’t refuse. Twenty dollars an hour was easily double what she was making at the campus bodega, and she had often thought Ben was a poor choice as gym desk greeter. She was already spending all her free time here anyway. 

"I mean, that sounds fantastic actually. I...when can I start?"

"As soon as possible" Luke said. Ben nodded his agreement. He really did hate being on the desk.

Rey felt the stress of the last week lift off her shoulders. She'd be able to pay her rent this month, buy groceries, and train at the gym besides. She felt her throat grow tight with emotion. She knew Ben hadn't meant anything significant by this gesture, but she couldn't stop the warm feeling of gratitude toward him blossoming in her chest.

She wouldn't let herself grow used to being helped, but she could learn to appreciate it when it happened.

\-----

As it turned out, the desk job was the perfect solution. Rey had a deeply personal and very genuine enthusiasm for Muay Thai that she found easy to share with the new people walking through the door. Having so recently been a beginner herself, she knew just what to say to set nervous newbies at ease. The first couple days alone saw a near doubling in the number of sign-ups for classes. Rey felt happy that she could contribute to the success of the gym in such a direct way, and have a steady income at the same time.

But things were going almost too well. It made Rey uneasy. She wasn’t used to things going her way like this, and a superstitious part of her was just waiting for the other shoe to drop. It made her restless, which was the only explanation she could come up with for why she was doing something so monumentally stupid.

She internally cursed herself again as she approached the rusty chain-link fence of the Jakku junkyard. Apparently Self-Destructive Rey was in ascension. It had all made sense in her head earlier. She’d just swing by after classes on her way to the gym. It was high noon, brightly lit, and Rey had brought a can of pepper spray tucked away in her hoodie pocket. It wouldn’t hurt to build a little nest egg in her bank account, just in case her new job at the gym didn’t work out. Rey knew the real reason though. Part of her just could not let go of her independence, and this was her way of rebelling against what felt like an encroachment on her self-sufficiency.

The moment she opened the gate and passed the first pile of towering vehicles, she knew she had made a mistake. Because there, with his back turned to her, was the unmistakable hulking figure of Unkar. Rey broke out in a cold sweat as he immediately swung around to see who had encroached on his territory.

Rey was momentarily stunned. What had happened to his face? It was a mass of livid purple bruises, his features almost unrecognizable from the swelling that glued one of his eyes shut.

When Unkar recognized her, a look of terror came over his face. "Oh shit! Oh fuck! I don't want any trouble!" His speech sounded funny to Rey, until Rey realized he couldn’t open his mouth wide enough to make proper syllables. His jaw was wired shut and he was missing a few of his front teeth. He rapidly backed away from her, almost tripping over himself with his hands held up in the universal gesture of surrender. 

Rey was bewildered. He kept talking rapidly, "Tell your boyfriend...I mean fuck….tell Mr. Kylo...I've learned my lesson. I won't ever bother you or anyone again...just let me..." He was almost hysterical at this point, and having backed away about 100 feet, suddenly turned and sprinted away. What had just happened? Who was Mr. Kylo?

Well, Rey wasn’t going to stick around at the junkyard after that. Something weird had happened here, and she’d been incredibly lucky already that her confrontation with Unkar had gone the way it had. She quickly left from the same gate she’d entered, making sure to check that Unkar was truly gone. Rey made her way to the gym, feeling both disturbed and confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did anyone catch the One Punch Man reference from last chapter? I crack myself up sometimes. Thanks for the kudos and comments!


	3. Advance

Rey's favorite part of the intermediate class was the sparring. At the end of class, after finishing the conditioning and pad drills, the students would pair up, strap into their protective gear, and put their skills to the test.

It was always a friendly activity. If someone started getting out of hand or was going too rough, then one of the more skilled students would pair with the troublemaker and bring them down a notch. It was a natural check and balance. There was no need for a rigid hierarchy of ranks or belts. The only metric was skill.

Rey liked the pragmatic attitude of Muay Thai. It had rules and traditions, but wasn't a slave to them. It was a living art and ultimately, the only real criteria for a technique or strategy was whether or not it worked in the ring.

At first she'd been stiff and nervous while sparring, but she soon tapped into her flow. After only a few weeks, she really started to have fun with it, trying out new combinations and getting creative with her movements.

Rey liked counter attacks best of all. There was something satisfying about taking someone's aggression and exploiting it to her advantage. It transformed a bad situation into an opportunity, a wonderful alchemy that Rey wished she could apply to her whole life.

She'd just finished sparring with Poe. He was easily thirty pounds heavier than her and had miles more experience, but Rey thought she'd done pretty well. She'd managed to neutralize his reach somewhat by staying on the inside, and had been landing body shots pretty much at will.

"So, when are you going to join the fight team Rey?", He asked with a grin.

Rey smiled at his question. Secretly, she was dying to have a sanctioned fight. As much as she enjoyed the sparring, she worried that people were holding back because of her size and inexperience. In a fight, that wouldn't be the case. She'd be matched with someone her own size and experience, so it would be a real test of her skill.

"I wouldn't mind having a fight eventually, but not until Luke thinks I'm ready. I don't have dental insurance you know!" she joked.

"Seriously though, you're ready. I've seen plenty of people have their debut fights when they were less prepared than you. There's only so much you can learn from drills. Competition is the real teacher!"

Luke was at the front desk talking to Ben. Poe called over loudly, "Hey Ajahn, when are you going to let Rey join the fight team?" Rey tried to shush him but he ignored her.

Luke looked over curiously, "Is that something you're interested in Rey?"

"Well, yeah, I guess. But I mean, not until you think I'm ready! I'm not trying to say… I mean, I know that it takes time to get good." She trailed off uncomfortably. What if Luke thought she'd put Poe up to it? And he thought she was being arrogant?

Luke seemed to mull it over. "Hmm, maybe. We'll see. Probably not right away." He left it at that. Rey tried not to feel rejected. She hadn't wanted to bring it up with Luke because she'd hoped to avoid the disappointment when he inevitably said no.

She always wanted too much and took setbacks too personally. She reminded herself not to be greedy, and instead be grateful for all the incredible opportunities the gym had already given her.

\---------

Rey hadn't meant to eavesdrop. She'd been walking past the office to grab cleaning supplies from the closet when she'd heard voices through the cracked door. Once she'd realized they were talking about her, well, it would've taken a stronger person than her to walk away.

“Look, I agree with you that she shows a lot of potential, but the fight team is at capacity right now. I wouldn’t have the time or the energy to give her the training she needs and it wouldn’t be fair to put her into the ring under-prepared.”

“Then let me train her!” Ben said, frustrated.

“You know that wouldn't be a good idea” was Luke’s reply.

Surprisingly, Ben let that answer stand, although Rey was burning with curiosity. They were both quiet for a few moments before Luke spoke again. He sounded thoughtful.  
“What if you took over someone else’s fight camp?”

“Like who?” Ben asked, suspiciously.

“Fly boy”

“No, absolutely not” was Ben’s immediate response. But Luke seemed to be warming up to the idea.

“Ben, really though, this is the right choice. I think it's great that you've been getting more involved with the new people at the gym, but you need to reconnect with the fight team."

“I cannot fucking stand that guy. He hates me. There's no way we can work together.”

“But you are exactly what he needs. He’s always been cocky, but lately it’s been getting dangerous. I need you to get him back on track. His next fight has real potential to launch his career, but he’s not developing the right skills because he won’t listen to me. He’s not a bad person, but I’m not able to challenge him the way he needs. You can be that catalyst for him”.

Ben scoffed. “What makes you think he would listen to me?” 

“On some level, he knows you’re the better fighter and it drives him nuts. That’s why he’s always needling you. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, especially at first. But if you can manage to deflate his ego just a little bit, he’ll come around. He’s not stupid and he doesn’t hold grudges.”

“Please, give me literally anyone else on the fight team” he said. Ben was almost whining.

“Sorry Ben, it’s Fly Boy or bust.” There was a long silence.

“Fine, I’ll try. Fuck. But if it doesn’t work out, somehow, you have to keep training Rey. I’ll teach more classes, or train someone else or whatever. But you make sure she’s ready”.

“Deal. I know it doesn’t seem like it to you, but I've got a good feeling about this.”

“Right. Sure Luke. You and your fucking feelings.”

Rey stepped back quickly into the women's locker room to avoid being seen as Ben stormed by. Ben was willing to train with Poe for her sake? Rey wouldn't let herself read too much into it. They were barely friends. What did he stand to gain?

\------

Luke waited another week before asking Rey if she was serious about joining the fight team. When she gave her eager assent, he told her plans would be made the following weekend for her induction. He warned her that joining the fight team would only be the first step. She'd have to go through several 'fight camps' before he'd submit her name to the fight organizers.

"Fight camp? Like, we go into the woods and make s'mores or something?"

Luke gave a bark of laughter, but Rey was genuinely confused. "I keep forgetting how new you are to all of this. No, fight camp is just what we call the 6 weeks of training leading up to a fight. It's very intense, and it's calibrated so that a fighter hits his or her physical peak on the day of the fight. "

That made sense to Rey. She could feel a new excitement building inside of her. This was the next step in her Muay Thai journey.

Time passed in a blur and the day of her induction finally arrived. She didn't know what to expect, and no one would tell her. Whenever she asked, they'd just smile and say "You'll see".  
She was so nervous that she had no appetite, but Ben warned her to eat a light breakfast anyways. 

All the members of the fight team were there, and some of the long-time students from the other classes. Rey was relieved to see Rose was there to support her.

First, Luke taught her the gym's Wai Khru. Rey had seen variations of it before in some of the fight videos she'd watched. Each traditional Muay Thai gym had a unique ritualistic dance that they performed to Thai prayer music before their fights. The purpose was to pay homage to their lineage, trainers, and ancestors. It was also to seal the ring against malevolent spirits. Rey had noticed that fighters were almost universally a superstitious bunch.

Then, she learned she would have to survive a Shark Tank. She'd spar each of the fight team's twenty members for consecutive three minute rounds. She'd get only a one minute break between each round. The rest of the team would form a circle and shout advice and encouragement to her while they waited their turn. It was basically the Muay Thai equivalent of a gangbang. This was why no one had warned her. 

Ben wasn't part of the fight team but he was there observing anyway. He leaned casually against the wall, holding himself apart as everyone else wrapped their hands and geared up to spar Rey.

"Ben, I have to figure out what order the students are going to go in. You warm-up Rey and give her the oil massage", Luke called over.

A look of panic flashed across Ben's face. "what? Um, but, I mean, can't Trooper…wait no, not Trooper...or maybe one of the girls?"

Luke fixed Ben with a hard stare. "Really Ben? You're a professional. She doesn't have cooties. You've been doing this for over a decade. I'm sure you can manage. Take her to the locker room and get her ready".

Luke turned and moved away, leaving Ben still protesting at his retreating back.

Oil massage? There was no way that could mean what Rey was picturing.

As it turned out, it was exactly what Rey was picturing. Ben retrieved a small glass bottle filled with an opaque, neon yellow liquid. As soon as he uncapped it, a distinct aroma filled the air.

"That's, uh, quite pungent-- a formidable scent. Really stings the nostrils", Rey said.

It smelled like Tiger Balm mixed with pure gasoline.

"It's called Namman Muay", was Ben's terse explanation. Ben looked both terrified and determined. "Ok, take off you shirt, and lay face down on this towel." She did as he instructed, leaving her sports bra on. Rey had never had a massage before. It was an inconceivable luxury to her. She wasn't sure what to expect or if she'd even like it.

She soon discovered however, that she apparently loved massages. The moment Ben laid his huge hands just beneath her shoulder blades and stroked firmly down her spine, Rey released an involuntary moan that sounded frankly sexual.

Rey was too absorbed in the sensation to even feel embarrassed. Ben's hands were amazing. Strong and firm, finding the knots in her shoulders and neck and digging them out. Her body soaked in his touch like a thirsty plant. He rhythmically kneaded and stroked her body. She felt like she was melting into the floor beneath her as she gave herself up totally to the sensation.

And the smell of the oil aside, it provided a tingling heat that both relaxed and energized her. Ben began speaking, his voice pitched slightly higher than Rey was used to hearing from him.

"So yeah, Namman Muay...it's a Thai sports liniment, kind of like Bengay. The exact formula is a trade secret, but it's based in Thai herbal traditions." Rey let out another loud moan as he found a particularly good spot. 

He sounded almost alarmed as he continued, speaking faster now. "A Thai oil massage is an integral part of the pre-fight ritual. It's believed that it both increases performance and speeds recovery. Corners do it all the time for their fighters! It's not a big deal at all!" His volume had risen as he talked until he was almost shouting at her. Rey didn't care, as long as he kept doing what he was doing. Rey shifted as she arched into his hands like a cat having it's fur stroked.

It was then that she noticed something. A very large something. Ben practically leapt away from her when she accidentally brushed against what she could only surmise was an impressive erection. 

"I'm not a pervert! I swear I'm not trying to be a creep! It's just those noises you were making, and my hands looked so big compared to your….shit, I totally sound like a pervert". 

Rey flipped onto her back, disappointed that the experience had ended so abruptly but also feeling pretty smug about Ben's reaction to her. Ben had backed away to the far side of the locker room, his hands palms out in front of him. If she'd had any doubts about his attraction to her, they were laid to rest when her eyes landed on the obscene tent in Ben's sweatpants. She was happy to note that he was extremely proportional. 

Rey just gave him a lazy smile, still relaxed and slightly addled by the massage. It was on the magnitude of a post-orgasmic haze. If he could bring her this kind of pleasure without going anywhere near her pussy, she'd probably transcend into another dimension when they finally had sex. She was looking forward to it. She opened her mouth without thinking, probably about to propose a standing exchange of sexual favors for massages, when Rose poked her head in the door.

She seemed totally oblivious to the tension in the room, probably because Ben had quickly turned around to hide his "problem" and was rummaging in a locker. "You're on deck Rey! Showtime in two minutes! Good luck! You're going to do amazing." And as quickly as she entered, she was gone 

Rey reluctantly stood up from the floor. Surprisingly though, the massage had done the trick. Her earlier fear and anxiety had dissipated. She felt calm and focused. It was time.

\------  
The first couple rounds weren't so bad. Rey tried to pace herself, remaining conservative in her attacks and mostly defending. But each round her opponent entered the ring fresh, while she only got more and more tired. By the 10th round, Rey wasn't sure she was going to make it. Her arms felt like lead and her breathing was coming in harsh gasps. Her technique had become incredibly sloppy, bit Rey couldn't worry about looking good. She was just trying to survive now. her opponents weren't trying to hurt her, but they were relentless, never letting up the pressure. All around her, the fight team cheered and encouraged her, and she kept finding just a little more energy to keep going.

Finally, she'd sparred the last one. She fell to the canvas, totally exhausted. Luke entered the ring and stood over her a moment before crouching down next to her head.

"Listen kid, in the big scheme of things, Muay Thai is nothing. Life is the real fight. It's an unfair mother fucker, and it will beat you down if you let it. We can't avoid the shit that life throws at us, but we can keep on struggling, keep on fighting for what's important to us. Welcome to fight team. We train together, we sweat together, and we look out for each other, in and out of the ring." He offered his hand to her, and hauled her up before giving her a tight hug. He whispered into her ear "You did great", and stepped back. 

The fight team surrounded her then, hugging her and slapping her back. Rey was totally wrung out, high on endorphins and feeling more than a little emotionally vulnerable. In that moment she loved every one of them. She felt her throat close and her eyes prickle with tears. These were her brothers and sisters. She was so exhausted that she didn't even care if she cried a little. And from across the room, her eyes met Ben's. His smile looked melancholy as he gave her a little salute and walked away.

\-----

It was only a few days later that things between Ben and Poe came to a head.

“That’s it, I’m fucking done with you” Rey heard Ben’s angry voice from all the way across the gym. He had been in the ring holding pads for Poe, but was angrily unstrapping them and throwing them out of the ring. The whole gym seemed to pause as they turned to take in the scene developing between the two men. 

“Fuck you Solo. You think you know everything but you’re nothing but a washed up has-been.” Rey’s jaw literally dropped. She knew they didn’t get along, but them were fighting words.

“Oh please” Ben sneered back “I could wipe the fucking floor with you right now. You’ve been lucky, any fucking amateur with 6 months of training could beat the shit out of you”. Rey looked around frantically for Luke. This was rapidly escalating and needed to be stopped. She finally spotted him, leaning casually on the lockers with his arms crossed. Why wasn’t he doing anything to stop this?

Poe smirked, as though he had backed Ben into a corner. “Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is? How about a friendly little sparring match? Since you think you’re so much better than me?”

Rey wasn’t sure what to think. There was too much animosity, the sparring was going to be anything but friendly. And she was worried for both of them. Poe had been training in fight camp, and as far as she knew, Ben hadn’t been doing anything except sitting at a desk since his retirement. But he had once been a pro, according to what Rey had gleaned. He was taller than Poe, but Poe was stocky and made of pure, dense muscle. She didn’t want either of them to get hurt, and she just didn’t see this ending without blood being spilled.

Ben’s jaw was working as he squared up with the shorter man. He was breathing hard as he clenched and unclenched his fists, but then broke eye contact with Poe to glance at Luke. Luke gave a minute shrug. That seemed to decide it for Ben. A wide smile broke out over Ben’s face “You got it Fly Boy. 5 rounds, 3 minutes. I’ll even let you pick who scores the rounds. Luke can ref if that’s alright with you?” Poe seemed slightly taken aback by Ben’s apparent enthusiasm. He’d been needling Ben for months trying to get a rise out of him, and all of sudden he was getting his wish. 

Poe smiled back maniacally “Agreed. Gear up.”

The whole gym broke out in hushed whispers, no one even bothering to try and hide their interest. Even the 6:30 kid’s class had stopped, and started to sit down around the ring, jostling for the best view. Rey couldn’t understand how everyone could be so excited. She felt sick with fear, and she soon realized it was mostly for Ben. She rushed over as he exited the ring and went to where he kept his equipment in the lockers.

“Ben, don’t do this. You can still back out.”

Ben gave her an annoyed look, and with some sarcasm replied “Don’t worry, I won’t hurt your boyfriend too bad. He still has a fight in 3 weeks, Luke would be pissed if I broke any of his bones.”

Rey tried not to let him rile her. “First of all, he’s not my boyfriend. Second of all, I’m not worried about him, I’m worried about you. He’s been training nonstop for the last 2 years, and he KO’ed his last opponent.” Ben looked at her disbelievingly. 

“You’re worried about me?” He paused to take this information in. Then he gave her a genuinely delighted smile. “That’s so sweet. I’m also slightly insulted, but trust me Rey, I got this no problem. And don’t worry, I’m truly committed to not hurting Fly Boy. I won’t lie, I am grateful for the opportunity to punch his stupid face in, but I think this needed to happen. And Luke didn’t step in to stop it like he did before, so I think it’s the right time”.

Rey was still nervous, but reassured by Ben’s confidence and apparent lack of rage. She was mulling it over and standing right next to him when he pulled off his sweatshirt. “Holy shit!” escaped her mouth before she could stop it.

Ben was fucking ripped. She'd always assumed he was a little chubby under the baggy sweatshirts he always wore, but nothing could be further from the truth. Ben's back was slabs upon slabs of muscle, etched in bold relief. His forearms were thick and defined, threaded with thick veins. Rey struggled to process this new information as her entire concept of Ben shifted. Her eyes roved helplessly over his exposed skin. He had over a dozen tattoos, some of which Rey recognized as Sak Yants. The more superstitious fighters had at least one of the stylized, geometric animals with sacred Pali prayers for power or protection. Her eyes trailed down the words "Let the Past Die" inked on his left forearm before drifting lower to follow the line of his abdominal muscles as they disappeared into the waistband of his shorts. He'd whipped off his sweatpants as well, and was left wearing the standard Thai shorts all the fighters trained in. The satin shorts were loose but ended at midthigh, leaving very little to the imagination. His well-muscled thighs were pale and dusted with a light smattering of dark hair. 

Rey had no clue how much time she spent ogling him before Ben cleared his throat. Her mortified eyes immediately snapped to his, as her hand rose to her mouth to ensure she hadn’t done anything as incredibly humiliating as drooled. He gave her a smirk as he asked “How you doin'?” and winked, fucking winked. Surly, sullen Ben Solo winked at her. Moody Ben Solo had the body of fucking Adonis and was winking at her. What dimension was she even in. 

Without waiting for her response, he picked up his gear and sauntered towards the ring in a markedly improved mood, leaving her staring at his incredibly well-formed and well-defined lats. Maybe she did need to listen to his nutrition advice.

The energy was still high as the two men entered the ring, although it seemed both men were less angry and more eager. This confrontation had been a long time coming. And Rey was obviously not the only one who found Ben’s body to be a revelation. Some of the women from the fitness class were openly admiring Ben’s impressive physique. Luke quickly laid out the ground rules. 

“You guys know the standard IKF regulations, but since this is a ‘friendly’ bout and we don’t have EMTs here, I’m also banning elbows. We’re all on the same team, so if things look like they’re getting ugly, I’m going to stop the match, so behave.” Both men acknowledged him with a nod, touched gloves, and went to their corners to wait for the bell.

Within 30 seconds of the starting bell, it became apparent why Ben had allowed Poe to pick the judges. Poe was completely and indisputedly outmatched. Rey had never seen anyone in the gym or at the organized fights who moved the way Ben did. He didn’t even appear to be trying. Every movement was relaxed, effortless. His punches looked almost gentle until they connected with Poe’s face and snapped his head back.

The first round, Ben seemed to focus on leg kicks. She very clearly heard him say to Poe “ I’m going to show you why you shouldn’t put so much weight on your front leg when you throw a jab”. For the remainder of the 3 minutes, every time Poe went to throw a jab, Ben countered with a brutal leg kick to his thigh. The first one almost buckled Poe’s leg, and a bruise quickly began to bloom. After he jabbed another time and ate a second kick to his lead leg, Poe tried to switch tactics but it was too late. His left leg was basically useless and he’d lost the mobility his style depended on. After that, Ben landed the leg kicks at will, and Poe didn’t have an answer, although he managed to land a few body shots that did not seem to phase Ben at all. The round bell rang again, marking the end of 3 minutes. They each went to their respective corners. Finn was waiting at Poe’s corner with a bottle of water, and Rey could see him whispering tactics and strategies to Poe. Ben didn’t have anyone is his corner, so Rey grabbed a bottle of water from the cooler and approached him with a towel. He was barely sweating, but he gave her grateful smile when she stepped up to his side. Rey felt something tug in the vicinity of her heart, but didn’t examine it too closely.

“Couldn’t you have left him a little pride?” she asked wryly. Ben smiled back unrepentantly. 

“Nope! God, I’ve been telling him to correct that for at least the last 2 weeks and he just kept brushing me off. I’ve got a whole syllabus ready for the next couple rounds,” he responded gleefully. 

“You’re enjoying it too much” she chided him.

“Do you think that makes me a bad person?” Ben asked her teasingly, but with a hint of concern .

“No, just petty. Try to leave him able to walk, if you can” she responded as the bell for the next round rang and he returned to the center of the ring to touch gloves with Poe again. The next few rounds were very similar to the first. Ben zeroing in on some feedback he'd been yelling at Poe for the last week, and Poe totally unable to mount any kind of effective defense. Rey had to give Poe credit though, because he didn't stop trying. He was clearly outclassed but kept digging deep and looking for openings.

Until something happened in the fifth round. By pure, blind luck, Poe swung wildly and managed to land a significant shovel hook to Ben's liver. The change that came over Ben was instantaneous, like watching a house cat go from playful to deadly. Almost of its own volition, Ben's rear leg snapped into a kick, aimed straight for Poe's completely unprotected head.  
Ray had seen the power of Ben's kicks on the heavy bags. His kicks had the force of a baseball bat swung by a major league player. In a split second, Poe recognized the danger he was in as an expression of "oh shit" flashed across his face, but it was too late for him to block or evade. It was like watching a car accident in slow motion. The entire gym inhaled collectively and braced for impact.

But, incredibly, the kick never landed. In an extremely inelegant and uncool maneuver, Ben flung his whole body backwards, landing with a loud thump on the canvas. There had been no other way to redirect the power and speed of the kick once it'd been launched. Ben Solo had sacrificed his dignity to prevent harming Poe.

"Shit." He said. Poe was still frozen, seemingly unable to process this new development. Luke rushed over to check on the two men, and suddenly the spectators broke out into excited conversation. Rey felt a crushing weight lift from her chest. It was ok. Everything was ok.

Luke helped Ben up, then announced "I think we've had enough for today", and led Ben from the ring. If anything, Ben looked more shaken than Poe did. As he walked down the stairs off the platform, Poe called out "Hey, Ben Swolo!" 

Ben turned, a slight grimace on his face at the obnoxious nickname. 

"What?"

"Thanks man", and Poe gave him a genuine smile.

Ben slowly smiled back. "Sure Fly Boy. Anytime you need an ass-kicking, just let me know."

\------

Rey had come to a decision. She wasn't going to just sit to the side and watch one of those thirsty women from the fitness class jump the line and get a ride on the Ben Solo Express before her. She'd had enough of being careful. It was time to take action.

She stood to the side of the back exit, near where Ben parked his Mercedes GLS-class. She'd stopped questioning where he got his money. Early everyone else had left by the time he finally came out. She cleared her throat to get his attention as she stepped out from the wall she'd been leaning on. He turned, and smiled when he saw it was her.

"So, your place or mine?"

Bless his soul, Ben didn't even try to play coy. He just grinned even wider before replying, "Lady's choice, but my shower fits two, if that's a factor in your decision".

"Your place it is then", she said.

Ben unlocked his car, then opened the passenger side door to his SUV like a fucking gentleman before carefully shutting her inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author does not actually recommend sensual massages with Namman Muay.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone, long-time reader, first-time writer here. Hope you guys enjoy!


End file.
